Large mobilization of PAME in Thessaloniki

It has become a custom that every September the Prime Minister of the country presents the work of their government at the International Fair of Thessaloniki (DETH) and also announces some of the next initiatives of the government.

As the statement of the Press Office of the CC of the KKE mentioned, this year's speech by A.Tsipras "was almost exclusively addressed to capital, advertising his government as the best "dealer" for the business groups and investors. For the people he had "smoke and mirrors" and false promises about social justice and relief from their problems, at the same time when their nightmarish future has already been predetermined."

It notes in its statement that the development promised by the Greek Prime Minister will take place in a dark age in terms of labour and social rights, which has been imposed by the anti-people measures, the low wages, the flexible labour relations, the non-existence of collective labour agreements, the favourable tax regime for capital and the businesses. In addition the SYRIZA-ANEL government is pushing forward the restriction on the right to strike and new cuts to social benefits. As the statement of the Press Office of the CC of the KKE, Tsipras "removed his left mask and revealed his true face, the face of the servant of the monopoly groups, of capitalist development.(...) the KKE calls on the workers, the popular strata to take matters into their own hands. They must struggle alongside the KKE in order to recover their losses and satisfy their needs, to prepare to launch the counterattack for a radically different organization of society, where with the abolition of profit the needs of the people and their satisfaction will come to the fore."

"Their development crushes our lives, we choose to struggle and counterattack."

It was under this slogan that the thousands of workers, farmers, young people and pensioners who took part in a mass way in the mobilization of the All Workers' Militant Front (PAME) on Saturday 9/9/2017 in Thesssaloniki demonstrated.

In his speech, Leonidas Stoltidis, member of the Executive Secretariat of PAME, stressed amongst other things:"Starting from here in Thessaloniki, we begin our continuous counterattack with our plan against the plan of the government, EU and industrialists to makes us modern slaves. We prepare the new great struggles of our lives and our needs, for the overthrow of the barbaric political line, of the anti-worker anti-people laws. The struggle for increases in salaries, pensions, social benefits, against the aims and strategy of the big capitalist employers. We begin the counterattack by strengthening the sites of resistance, with the ambition that the flame of resistance will rise up everywhere. We escalate in a planned and determined way for the tough confrontation. Together with our allies, the farmers, the self-employed, together with students we address a call for the struggle to be organized in every workplace, sector, village, neighbourhood, university. No compromise with poverty, with a miserable life. Organization and struggle to overturn the situation. This is our slogan. It is either us or the monopolies. There is no other solution."

Dimitris Koutsoumpas, GS of the CC of the KKE, participated in PAME's demonstration and in his statement to the representatives of the mass media underlined the following:"The Greek people have had their fill of false promises, big talk, deception about the development which is on its way. However , real development for the Greek people means increases in wages and pensions, increases in social benefits, means the abolition of the ENFIA (property) tax and the anti-people tax measures; it means jobs for everyone, cancellation of the memorandums and all the anti-people, anti-worker measures which accompanied these memorandums.

This is the way, the way out for the development to the benefit of our people which the KKE is proposing. This mobilization of PAME, of the other class-oriented organizations of the poor farmers and the self-employed , of the youth, women of the popular families, here at the DETH, in Thessaloniki, this year as well, is only the beginning. New large militant mobilizations will follow.

The KKE will devote all its forces in this direction, so that the Greek people will be finally relieved after ten years of continuous economic crisis and barbaric memorandums."